The Afghan government says the leader of the Taliban is dead. One-eyed Mullah Mohammed Omar led the Taliban for more than 20 years through victory and defeat. Renowned Afghan author Qais Akbar Omar shares his reflections on Mullah Omar and life under the Taliban.

Updated

07/29/2015 - 10:30am

The Japanese economy saw its heyday back in the 1980s. Since then, businesses have been slow to innovate. And the population is aging and declining. The tech startup scene was bleak, until recently. Here's one community that's been generating some noise, just a bit under the radar.

Last week, aspiring basketball players traveled to Las Vegas, hoping to be drafted onto a professional team. But this wasn’t for the NBA; these athletes were hoping to play in South Korea. The Korean Basketball League is growing, and attracting American players.

The US may have been able to finally get Turkey to join the war against ISIS. But the price was steep. Turkey has also gotten the green light to attack its other enemy in the region: the Kurds. The Kurds are old US allies, and the deal has caused outrage.

Critics believed the upgrade from tier three to tier two was a political decision to facilitate Malaysia’s participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a massive free trade deal being aggressively pushed by President Barack Obama.

In Nepal, as many as a quarter of newborn deaths could be prevented with the use of an inexpensive antiseptic ointment, routinely used after childbirth in the US. The challenge is getting it to the women who need it in time.

Updated

06/28/2015 - 3:30pm

It's reminiscent of a black-and-white pirate flag and, for some, it conjures up similar feelings of death, destruction, outlaws and violence. Here is our quick explanation of the symbolism of the flag and the meaning of its Arabic phrases.

How should a woman ask for a raise? She shouldn't, said Microsoft's CEO at recent women's tech conference. But if that sounds shocking, it wasn't for many Indian women who have been told throughout their lives to keep quiet while the men are encouraged to get ahead.

Updated

05/08/2015 - 1:30pm

Taco al pastor, the classic Mexican street food that’s popular in the US, has roots in a surprising place: the Middle East. Thanks to immigrants from the former Ottoman Empire, the classic street dish of shawarma morphed into the beloved taco of today.

The US State Department has resumed non-lethal aid to the more moderate rebel groups in Syria. Along with food, medical supplies and communications equipment, the aid includes 43 Toyota pickup trucks. The BBC's Afghanistan correspondent David Loyn explains the value of pick-up trucks in war zones.

Death is expensive. The American casket industry is a $1.5 billion business, leading some families to seek out cheaper options from China. But the Chinese haven't been able to bury the American competition.

What’s a bunch of trees worth? Well, if they save your town from the storm surge of a huge typhoon, you might say they’re invaluable. That’s what happened to the community of General MacArthur, in the Philippines, and its fate holds a lesson for coastal communities around the world.

Some people call haeynyos Korea's matriarchs, but I think they're more like Korea's first working mothers. They dive without oxygen tanks, plunging up to 60 feet in the water, holding their breath for up to two minutes at a time.

Victoria Hanna, a longtime fixture of the small indie Jewish spiritual music scene, released her first single this month. It's just a riff on a Hebrew alphabet song, but the video became an Internet hit.

Since the tragic attack at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, there have been a lot of questions about how Islam views depiction of the Prophet Muhammed. So, can you or can't you draw the Prophet?

The US State Department has resumed non-lethal aid to the more moderate rebel groups in Syria. Along with food, medical supplies and communications equipment, the aid includes 43 Toyota pickup trucks. The BBC's Afghanistan correspondent David Loyn explains the value of pick-up trucks in war zones.

When India celebrated the success of its first Mars mission, a photo of middle-aged female scientists draped in saris became the viral face of that triumph. But that doesn't mean female scientists face an easy path, and Rhitu Chatterjee says much more needs to be done for gender equality.